An ‘American bumble bee’ (Bombus pensylvanicus) queen. Photo: T. Harrison.
Within the bee world, the most well-known species is undoubtedly the European honey bee (Apis mellifera). However, many aspects of our terrestrial ecosystems – namely the pollination of wild and agricultural plants – rely on the humble bumble bee (genus Bombus). To combat the unfortunate decline of our vital native bumble bee species, Wildlife Preservation Canada’s Native Pollinator Initiative implements a variety of conservation techniques that require on-the-ground fieldwork.
Conservation breeding is a crucial component in understanding species-at-risk and boosting their populations, and is also a technique we focus on with the ‘Special Concern’ yellow-banded bumble bee (Bombus terricola) (you can learn more about our bumble bee breeding lab here). Of course, our breeding efforts can’t begin if we don’t have bees in the lab, so capturing yellow-banded bumble bee queens is one of our top priorities during spring surveys!
Black and gold bumble bee (B. auricomus) queens. A species dear to my heart! Photo: T. Harrison.